Beauteous Ardor
by LadyKillerD
Summary: What happened when you meet the one person you're determined to forget? Or when you fall in love with someone who was supposed to be killing you?


**A/N: So, I got inspired to write Cedric/Hermione after reading Eclairs by Flaignhan (It was cool, really) and I've always loved Stefan/Elena, fantasizes about Serena/Edward, -love- Chuck/Blair and once my mind even thought of Kahlan Amnell and Nate Archibald. And -of course- Damon Salvatore with this girl everyone should know about, Jessikah Calvert, (Twitter RPer, btw a.k.a -my- girl). This fic won't be long. Not really. SO, enjoy. ;)**

**Beauteous Ardor by LadyKillerD**

The ongoing chatter over the dinner table was starting to annoy Damon Salvatore, who had not been too willing to join the feast had his brother not forced him to. He shot a glare towards the younger Salvatore, seated opposite him. But Stefan didn't notice, of course. He was too busy admiring the human girl he had so deeply fallen in love with months ago. That too, annoyed Damon.

He let his eyes linger, off to study each of his so-called friends carefully. Beside Stefan, seated the witch with curly, strawberry blonde hair, long enough to touch her shoulders, Hermione Granger. Damon felt a smirk crawl upon his lips. Once not long ago, maybe he had tried to win her heart. And he refused to remember that he failed. She was impossibly immune to his charms.

His oceanic blue orbs strayed away from the witch, landing onto the perfectly sculptured, goddess re-incarnation, Mother Confessor, Kahlan Amnell. He swallowed at the sight of her. Kahlan has this effect on almost every men on Earth. Her beauty made her seem to be glowing from within. Pale skin, constrasted with her long dark hair. Damon doesn't know if she does this on purpose, but every dress she wore never failed to reveal her deep cleavage.

He shook his head, moving on to another person. Cedric Diggory sat side by side with his doppelganger, Edward Cullen. Their difference of character always make Damon wonder how they could possibly be alike. They were identical, of course, but Cedric was younger, skinnier and, well, cheeky. Really cheeky. The boy thinks he's got all the girls drooling all over him. Well, as much as Damon hated to admit, it was true. He had to roll his eyes at that.

Plus, he was sure Cedric and Hermione had something going on between them.

There was a knock on the door, and Damon sighed in relief to have somethint interrupting the noisy chatter (most of them from the witches and other vampire friends Edward had invited over). Edward had gone to get the door, and Damon couldn't help bit realize how Cedric was mouthing some things to Hermione, causing her to giggle. Damon raised his brows, the witch rarely giggled.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Edward started when he came back, and Damon had to strain his neck to see who was standing behind him.

The chatters stopped immediately even though Edward's voice was low, he had that effect on everyone, really. That too, annoyed Damon. Edward flashed them a dimpled smile, moving ever so slightly and revealing the blonde who had been hidden behind him from the moment they came in.

Damon felt his eyes widen, his breath hitching at the back of his throat. His blue optics glued to her baby blue ones. Long blonde hair, perfectly scuptured red lips, and curvacious figure that no way in hell would he ever forget. Yes, he knows this girl. He knows her very well.

He'd fallen in love with her 145 years ago.

Who doesn't know Jessikah Calvert, the huntress?

Everyone noticed how Damon stared after the huntress. Their eye contact and intense gaze was almost sexual. Hermione had to shake her head at that. _Why did I ever think of that? _She thought to herself. She also noticed how Edward had a smile on his lips when Damon and Jessikah started staring at each other, almost as if he had planned it all along. It wasn't a surprise that Edward might have been friends with someone whose main goal was to kill people like him.

None of those bothered her, though. Tonight she was focusing only on the cheeky, doppelganger of Edward Cullen, not a vampire, but a Wizard, one of the TriWizard Champion, Cedric Diggory. He had met her eyes earlier at the feast, mouthing the word 'Awkward' at her when he was caught in between Edward and Kahlan, clueless on what to say.

Hermione found that adorable. And she had giggled despite herself. She smiled at the memory, shaking her head to herself as she settled to study in the library (yes, Edward owns a library in his mansion). She had immune to all of the charms from the boys around her, finding them rather annoying. The guys she had tolerated were her best friends, Harry and Ron, though they both, too, had been annoying. Edward is a fine gentleman, and she was glad she had been invited to this gathering he had held, inviting all the non-humans that he trusted.

A shadow hovered above her, and she looked up only to find Cedric grinning cheekily down at her. He had a book in one hand, before settling himself down next to her.

"Nice feast, wasn't it?" He smiled, flipping through the pages of his book, though his eyes were on her. She felt heat rise up to her cheeks.

"It was," She nodded, her eyes scanning through the page, but her mind not registering the words. "How did the conversation with Kahlan and Edward go, though?" She stifled a chuckle.

Cedric laughed, shaking his head. "I have never been in any conversation that bad."

Hermione laughed with him, noticing how his lips twitch when he smiles (not that she was staring). She cleared her throat after a moment, chuckling nervously to herself as she looked away, hating that she find herself did stare, and he'd noticed, she swore he did. He just pretended not to.

"I'll do better next time I'm around Kahlan. She unnerved me!" He spoke dramatically, lightening up at the mood, his words only causing her to gasp.

"In what way does she unnerve you, Mr Diggory?"

"Do you see how low she wore her neckline? No? Maybe not. But us men sees what girls don't usually notice." His eyes widen.

Hermione laughed once again, closing her books. "Of course. Men and their eyes."

"Well, some men get unnerved by them. Men like that prefer bookworms."

She blushed again, somehow knowing what he meant. She rolled her eyes, getting up and gathering her books into her arms. "I'd best go, Cedric. It's late."

He only nodded as he too, got up. Just as she was about to leave, he grabbed her wrist softly, smiling as he pulled her to him. She thought her heart might explode right out of her chest as her mind raced. Instinctively, her eyes closed, and she could feel his lips on her forehead. Relief, and disappointment washed over her. She flashed him a smile, waving a little before walking off.

She could hear his faint, "Goodnight, Hermione.", but she didn't respond. No one had ever made her feel the way Cedric does. And it was almost thrilling. For the first time in her life, something interesting was happening. And why was she disappointed when he kissed her forehead and not her mouth? Had she been expecting he'd kissed her?

_Don't be absurd, Hermione._ She reminded herself.

Maybe, just maybe, Cedric Diggory had captured her heart.

Stefan stood at the front porch watching the girls tease each other about their hair, shaking his head as he find no reason for it to be sane at all. _Girls, _he thought, smiling to himself.

Someone had her arms wrapped around his waist from behind, and he knew, without turning, that it was Elena. No words could ever explained how much he loves her. He had been attracted to her, partly because of the resemblance to Katherine. They were identical, yet Elena was a total different person. Selfless, kind and real. Unlike, Katherine who was selfish and didn't actually love him like she said she did. Maybe she did, but Stefan couldn't be sure.

He smiled, turning around to wrap his arms around Elena's waist, pulling her in for a soft kiss. She smiled against his lips, and so did he. The feelings he had for was undescribable, impossible yet it was there. He was oblivious to his surrounding - his brother meeting an old fling, he thought - as of the moment. All he could see was the shining glow that came within the girl standing before him.

He was content, not happy, but content. Enough to quirk up a smile. He knew what was going on in their minds, the rush, the heat, the overwhelming love, the memories. Edward wanted his friends to get what they really need. It was important to them, and he knew that it would make them strong. For one, he couldn't wait for Cedric to tell Hermione how he feels about her already. And at dinner, he'd invited Jessikah, the huntress. He knew what happened 145 years ago.

And as for Stefan and Elena, he was glad that they found love in each other. He had a feeling they would need their soulmates for what would happen in the future. Yes, he called them soulmates because he believed everyone has one, though most of them doesn't. Some of them who fell for humans, Edward was worried. Enemies might use their weaknesses against them.

But that was for later. He needn't worry now. He smiled, watching his friends talked and laughed and some even having their usual bickering - that would be Damon and Bonnie, with Jessikah hanging around behind them - Edward had to smile at that too. They wouldn't be the friends he know now if the bickering doesn't exist, the annoying chatter, and giggles.

If only he'd known, he'd avoided it, he'd do anything to prevent it.

But he didn't.

He didn't know meeting the love of his life would change everything.

**- Short Stelena scene. D: Anyway, what do you think? Not my best, that's for sure. -_- I'd like to write more of Dessikah and Cedmione in the next chapter before Nate, Serena, Blair and Chuck appears. Heh. Until next time.**


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